New World, Old Bonds
by Perpetual Paradox
Summary: Geo and his friends are transported to the Pokemon world against their will. Separated from each other, they now must rely on their new friends and new Pokemon to reunite and find their way back home.
1. Prologue

**And adding to the list of fanfics I never thought I'd write, _this._ I wrote out the entire first chapter before coming back to write this prologue, and I tried to make it brief. So yeah, anyway, this takes place post-SF3 and near the beginning of Pokemon X/Y. So slight spoiler warning for both games. Pokemon X/Y will be significantly less spoiler-y because there's not much of a plot to spoil. It's Pokemon.**

 **Also, if there ends up being any pairings, those will probably be Geo x Sonia and Calem x Serena. Maybe others, depends on which characters I drag into this.**

 **Anyway, if anyone even finds this fanfic, enjoy!**

* * *

"Hey Kid? Come on, wake up, you've got a call coming in," a voice called from Geo's Hunter VG. The sleepy boy groaned and grabbed the device that had fallen to the floor.

"Thanks, Mega," he replied and accepted the incomming call. His Hunter projected a screen that showed the face of one of his good friends, Luna Platz.

".. Were you asleep?" She asked, leaning forward to get a better look at Geo, who was clearly still wearing pajamas. "It's almost noon."

"Uh, yeah, sorry Prez," he replied sheepishly. "I was out stargazing pretty late last night. Am I late for something? I didn't think we had anything planned for today.."

"No, we didn't," Luna assured him, then went on to explain the purpose of the call. "Listen, Sonia and I are here in Willshire Hills to see a movie, but the theater is malfunctioning. They can't figure out what's wrong."

"Is it a virus?" Geo asked, finally getting out of bed.

"That's what we thought," Luna answered. "But Sonia and Lyra couldn't find anything. Could you.. uh, I mean, could Megaman come check things out for us and figure out what's wrong?"

"Sure thing Prez, I'm on my way," he answered, and with that the call ended. Omega-Xis appeared on the Hunter's screen.

"Finally, some action. Things have been way too quiet around here, you know? It's getting boring," the AMian complained, causing Geo to roll his eyes.

"We don't know if there'll be any action. If HarpNote couldn't find anything, we probably won't either," Geo replied while quickly changing into clothes. He put on his usual red jacket, blue shorts and red boots. Lastly he slipped on his treasured pendant and visualizer.

"Aw come on, be a little more optimistic," Omega-Xis said with an annoyed sigh.

"I am," Geo teased with a hint of a smile. "Okay, come on, let's not keep them waiting. I don't want to get in trouble with Prez for taking too long."

Before long, the two had left the house in the form of Megaman and were headed off toward Willshire Hills via the wave road. It only took a few minutes for them to arrive, and Megaman went straight into the projector's cyber core. He found HarpNote waiting inside.

"Hey Geo," she greeted him with a smile. He smiled back.

"Luna said something's delaying your movie?" he asked, walking toward her. She turned and began leading him in another direction.

"That's right," she answered with a nod. "I didn't spot any viruses whatsoever, and that in itself is a bit odd. But, I did sense some strange energy originating from over here."

"That does seem strange," Omega-Xis mumbled. Megaman followed until he too felt the energy she had mentioned. At that point, he stopped and glanced around. "This.. this feels like crimson. But where is it?"

"I have no idea," HarpNote replied with a shrug. At that moment, the ground began to shake. The two cast worried glances at each other before bright flashes of red caught their attention. A ball of crimson, larger than anything they had encountered and growing in size, appeared before them and began corrupting everything around it.

"Pulse out, now!" Megaman commanded HarpNote, and both immediately left the cyber core.

Once back in the real world, it became apparent that the shaking wasn't contained to just the cyber core. It seemed that the inhabitants of the theater had all evacuated, save for Luna. Geo and Sonia, who were no longer in their wave changed forms, ran to her.

"What did you two do?!" she called frantically.

"I don't know!" Geo answered with just as much panic in his tone. Before they had even gotten a moment to catch their breath, the still growing ball of crimson flew outward from the projector's cyber core. It began emitting a powerful force, one that threatened to pull in all three kids.

"Hold on everyone!" Geo yelled over the terrible noise. Soon after, he heard Luna scream. The girl was being pulled toward the cluster of crimson, and Geo had to lurch forward to grab her hand. Sonia grabbed his hand in turn, and despite their best efforts, the three were pulled into the crimson and everything went dark.

* * *

Elsewhere, a girl with long, light brown hair sat alone at a small table while holding a cup of tea. A Holo Caster lay in front of her, projecting an image of an older woman.

"Yes mom, I'll be home in a few hours," the girl said before nonchalantly taking a sip of her tea.

"Don't be too long, Serena. I want too see your Pokemon and that new badge of yours. Your first gym badge! How exciting," the woman grinned, clasping her hands together.

"Shh, it's not that big of a deal. You're embarrassing me!" the girl protested, hiding her blush from her mother using the tea cup.

"Alright, alright, I'll let you get back to your shopping. See you in a few hours," the woman replied with a wink, and the Holo Caster shut off.

"See ya," the girl replied, though the transmission had already ended. With a sigh, she glanced toward the busy streets though the window of the cafe she sat in. She absent-mindedly ran an index finger around the rim of her cup. "I have a feeling that something interesting is about to happen.."

* * *

 **Bit of an obvious reference to the XY anime with that last sentence. That being said, in terms of the Pokemon universe where the majority of this fic will take place, I'm mostly going to be pulling from the games. However, certain (mostly minor) things, such as Serena's personality will be based on the anime.**

 **Okay, I hope you enjoyed this little intro bit. I think the next part is much more interesting, so I hope you stick around c:**


	2. Chapter 1

**I guess if you're here, that means you actually enjoy both SF and Pokemon and this entire crossover won't go to waste. In that case, thanks a bunch. Here's the first real chapter.**

* * *

Geo hadn't fully woken yet, but he could tell he was laying in a bed. If he hadn't been so groggy, he would have noticed all the foreign smells that indicated this was not his home, nor his bed. Eventually he opened his eyes with a groan, and was met with quite a shock. A honey-haired girl, somewhere around his age or perhaps older, was sitting in a chair across the end of the bed at a desk with a computer. She turned to face him when she noticed him wake.

"Oh! You're awake now. Are you feeling okay?" the girl asked, staring at him with curious blue eyes.

"Huh? Where am I?" Geo replied, reaching up to rub his forehead. He felt only his hair, and began to panic. His visualizer wasn't there. He tried to sit up quickly, but he was hit will dull pain from the soreness.

"Oh, your glasses are on the shelf behind the bed. I went ahead and took them off for you, I hope you don't mind." the girl said, noticing his frantic glances around the room. "My name is Serena, and you're in my house in Vaniville Town. My bedroom, to be more specific. I found you out cold in the grass while I was training my Pokemon."

"Pokemon..?" Geo mumbled quietly, though the girl didn't hear him. He reached up behind him and gave a sigh of relief when he felt his visualizer. He slipped them back onto his forehead. "Um, thanks, I guess. My name is Geo, by the way. I don't really know how I got here. How far is Echo Ridge?"

"Echo Ridge?" Serena asked with a look of confusion. "I've never heard of it. Sounds like you might've come a long way. Is that your hometown?"

"Yeah," Geo replied with a nod. Then, all of a sudden, he remembered to check if Omega-Xis was okay. He quickly searched his pockets and was delightfully surprised to find that he still had his Hunter VG on him. Mega, however, was nowhere to be found. This worried him, and it showed visibly on his face.

"Is something wrong?" Serena asked with a frown. "Is your, uh, thing broken?" The device Geo held looked a bit like a Holo Caster, only she'd never seen one like it before.

"Huh? Oh, no, it isn't broken," Geo answered, slipping his Hunter back into his pocket. He really needed to get out and find Mega, and the others if they were around.

"Um, by the way.." the girl said nervously, folding her hands neatly on her lap. "I think you may have lost your Pokeballs. I looked around where I found you to see if you may have dropped them, but I didn't find anything."

"Lost my what?" Geo asked, quite confused. "I.. don't know what that is."

"You.. don't?" Serena replied, shocked. "You've never heard of a Pokeball? I guess that means you don't have any Pokemon either."

"I.." Geo started, but realized that his lack of knowledge on the subject was likely making him stand out more than he wanted to. "No, I don't have any.. Pokemon."

"Well, that's a relief, I guess. I thought you might have been separated from them, and that's a terrible thing," Serena replied. She turned and grabbed a shiny round object from the desk, and held it up for him to see. "This is a Pokeball. You keep a Pokemon in it. See?" she demonstrated by pressing the button on the red and white object, and the lid popped up. There was a flash of red and an animal suddenly materialized, one that Geo had never seen before, though it looked like a small fox. To his surprise, the fox shouted "Fennekin!"

"This is Fennekin, my main partner and my first Pokemon," Serena explained. "I got him from Professor Sycamore not too long ago when I started my journey."

"He's, um, very cute," Geo said, not sure what else comment. The fox seemed pleased anyway.

"It's odd that you left home without a Pokemon. Maybe you could get one from the Professor? I could take you to Lumiose City, it wouldn't be any trouble."

"Uh, I don't know.." Geo hesitated, partly because he didn't want to hassle her but also because he wasn't sure what he was getting into. On the other hand, if he was in an unfamiliar land, and he was almost certain he was, having someone that knew her way around would be helpful. He realized he'd need her help if he wanted to have any hopes of finding Omega-Xis and the rest of his friends.

"Serena!" a new voice called from down below, cutting the girl off as she was about to speak again.

"That's my mother, excuse me please," Serena said as she hurriedly stood from her chair and headed across the room and down the stairs. Geo was left alone and soon heard chatting from down below.

Unsure of whether he was expected to follow or stay in bed, Geo eventually made the decision to get up. After another quick glance at his Hunter - still no Mega - he followed where Serena had gone down the stairs.

Serena and her mother were talking when Geo reached the bottom of the stairs, but both turned to look at him. Serena's mother, who was taller with darker and shorter hair, approached him. "Serena told me you had woken up. Are you feeling okay? You didn't look too hurt."

"Yeah, I'm okay, thank you for letting me rest here," Geo replied, feeling incredibly awkward about the whole situation.

"It's no trouble at all," the woman asked with a sweet smile. She had the same look that reminded Geo of his own mother. "So, Serena mentioned that you don't have any Pokemon?"

'Why does everyone talk about Pokemon?' Geo asked himself silently, and then shook his head. "No ma'am, I don't."

"My daughter could take you to Lumiose City to speak with the Pokemon professor, I'm certain he'd give you one," she offered. "You should always have a Pokemon on you if you're traveling, if for no other reason than to protect yourself from wild Pokemon."

This time, Geo had another opportunity to respond to the offer. "Sure, that sounds fun."

"Perfect! Should we go?" Serena asked excitedly.

"One moment," her mother replied, and swiped two small brown lunch bags off the counter. She handed them both to Serena. "Take these with you to eat on the way."

"Thanks mom," Serena replied, stuffing both of the lunches into her pink purse. She picked up her Fennekin who had been at her feet before she turned to Geo with a smile. "Okay, let's go!"

Geo nodded and followed Serena as she opened the door and exited the house. Outside, a large rhinoceros-looking animal blocked their path with a grunt. Geo bit his lip. What on Earth was that?

"Hey Rhyhorn," Serena cooed, crouching down so she could rub the creature on the nose. "I'm heading back to Lumiose City, but I'll be back another day."

The creature grunted again and walked a few steps away, plopping down onto a mat in the front yard next to a ball. Was this thing a pet? Serena must have noticed Geo looking uncomfortable when she turned around so she gave him a reassuring smile. "My mother used to be a Rhyhorn racer, so we have a Rhyhorn. They look scary but they're pretty gentle Pokemon."

Geo nodded even though he didn't really understand. This Rhyhorn didn't look anything like the Fennekin, but it was a Pokemon as well.

As they began moving again, a thought came to Geo. "Um, before we go, could you take me to where you found me?"

"Hm? Oh, sure. It's over this way," Serena motioned for him to follow and began walking in a different direction. Her Fennekin jumped out of her arms and ran ahead. Soon they were away from the houses and in a grassy area. "You were right here on the ground."

Geo looked around and even put on his visualizer, but frowned when he didn't see anyone else. He thought he'd at least find Mega.

"Did you lose something?" Serena asked, sounding a bit worried.

"Not something, someone," he answered with a frown while slipping off his visualizer. "I was with some friends, but I think we got separated. I'm worried they might be lost like I am."

"Don't worry, I'm sure we'll find them. Let's look on our way to Lumiose City, okay? We can ask the professor, too. He usually knows about new people in the area since he's responsible for giving out starter Pokemon. There's also a chance one of your friends will go to the professor while looking for you." Serena replied.

Geo nodded, but he seemed distant. He had a way of worrying about his friends, and letting those worries get to him. But he knew he needed to get searching, so he turned back to Serena. "Okay, let's go."

She nodded and scooped up her Fennekin. Once again the two were on their way out of Vaniville Town and headed off toward Lumiose City.


	3. Chapter 2

It was such a short walk to the next town that Geo wondered why it was even separate from Vaniville Town. He saw a few shops, but not too many houses. When they first entered there were tables and chairs to the left and right, some of which had people sitting at them. At the far end of town, a bridge extended across a river.

"This is Aquacorde Town," Serena explained. "There's no gym or Pokemon center, so most of the people here either live here or are on their way in or out of Vaniville Town."

Geo nodded, but didn't say anything in response. It seemed like a nice little town, quiet like Echo Ridge.

"Up ahead is Santalune Forest," she continued. "It's pretty dangerous if you don't have a Pokemon, but you're with me, so we'll be fine."

"What makes it dangerous?" Geo asked, finally speaking again since they first left Vaniville Town.

"The wild Pokemon," Serena answered. "Though, most of the Pokemon around here are pretty weak, not much to worry about."

Once over the bridge, Geo then noticed the dark entrance to the forest Serena had mentioned. Suddenly he felt thankful that Serena had offered to guide him, though he still wished he knew where Mega was. He'd probably tease Geo for being intimidated by a forest.

"Okay, stay close. There's some dead ends in there," Serena warned, and the two entered the dark forest. Geo noticed clearly marked paths that branched off in different directions, so he stuck close to Serena so as not to get lost. That would have been embarrassing.

"Hey! You!" a voice called from the right. "I challenge you to a battle!"

Geo turned in time to spot a brown-haired boy in a blue hoodie run up to him, holding out a Pokeball. He stammered out a response. "Um, I don't, uh-"

"He doesn't have any Pokemon," Serena anwered for him, which Geo greatly appreciated. "But I could take your challenge." Her Fennekin cooed and jumped down from her arms to sit at her feet.

At this point, Geo was both confused and curious. To him, battling was an entirely different experience that involved viruses, but it appeared that in this place Pokemon were somehow involved.

"Okay! Let's battle," the boy said with a grin. He turned and ran to put some distance between himself and Serena, but once he turned back he threw his Pokeball. It snapped open, and like Serena had demonstrated to him earlier, a Pokemon appeared. This one looked like a rabbit.

"Bunnelby, hm? Okay, go Vivillon!" Serena shouted as she tossed a Pokeball as well. From the ball, a massive white butterfly emerged.

"Tackle it!" the boy called out, pointing to Serena's Pokemon. The Bunnelby leaped forward and slammed into the Vivillon.

"Vivillon, use Gust!" Serena ordered, causing Geo to be surprised by her spirit. She had seemed so calm up until now. Her Pokemon rapidly fluttered its wings to create a powerful gust of wind, causing the other Pokemon to lose its balance and tumble backwards.

Serena's opponent didn't seem too fazed and called out "Quick Attack!" Once again, the Bunnelby bounded forward and aimed an attack at her Pokemon. It was a direct hit, but the Vivillon was still going.

"Okay Vivillon, we almost got it! Use Sleep Powder!" Serena called, her hand closing into a fist. Her Vivillon swooped over its opponent, sprinkling green-colored spores onto the Bunnelby, which lost consciousness and fell over.

"Tackle!" she shouted, and the Vivillon swooped down and slammed into the sleeping Bunnelby.

"Bunnelby, return!" the boy called, holding out his Pokeball. His Pokemon disappeared in a flash of red and the ball snapped closed. He frowned for a moment, but still smiled at Serena. "Thanks for the battle."

"No problem," Serena cheerily replied. "Thanks a lot, Vivillon! You can return now."

"Vivillon!" the Pokemon sang as it was recalled into its Pokeball. Serena put the ball back into her purse and turned to Geo. "Sorry for the delay, should we get going again?"

"Uh, yeah.." Geo replied quietly. "How often does that happen? Battle challenges, I mean."

"Pretty often," Serena answered. "It's common for trainers to challenge other trainers who pass by, and it's usually considered rude to decline." She once again began walking toward the other end of the forest.

Geo followed after her. "Doesn't it hurt the Pokemon?"

"Hm? Uh.. well, they _can_ get hurt, but only bad trainers would actually _force_ a Pokemon to battle. Pokemon like battling. Right Fennekin?" Serena asked.

"Fen!" the Pokemon cooed in agreement as it walked alongside its trainer.

Geo didn't say anything else on the matter, and eventually they reached the other side of the forest. The path they followed led out of the darkness, and once they were back out in the open Serena pointed over a hill. "See that over there? That's Santalune City. I got my first gym badge there. Well, my only gym badge so far."

Geo didn't understand the concept of gyms and badges, but he didn't ask. He and Serena kept walking and before long, they reached Santalune City.

"Hey, are you hungry?" Serena asked. They had stopped in front of a small fountain.

"Oh, uh, a little bit," Geo answered. Thinking back, he hadn't actually eaten since the day before. There was no time to eat when he was rushing to help Sonia and Luna with their theater problem, and he hadn't thought about food since then. It was a bit unlike him.

"Alright, let's eat those lunches my mom made for us. Come on," she motioned for him to follow and walked over to one of the small tables near the fountain, each with two chairs. As Serena sat down, she pulled the two lunch bags from her purse, handing one to Geo. He nodded her a thank you.

Serena had just begun to eat her sandwich when a feminine voice called her name. A girl with brown hair, a pink shirt and short blue shorts ran towards the two of them. She was waving with one had and holding a Pokemon in the other.

"Shauna!" Serena called with a smile. Her Fennekin excitedly greeted them as well.

"I didn't think I'd see you here! I thought you were in Lumiose City," Shauna chattered away, at the same time stealing a chair from a nearby table to sit with them. She glanced to Geo. "And who's this?"

"This is Geo, I met him this morning. We're headed back to Lumiose City together," Serena answered with a smile. "We're going to see Professor Sycamore to get his first Pokemon."

"Oh, exciting! It wasn't that long ago that I met my cute lil' Chespin for the first time," Shauna said, placing her Pokemon on the table. Eventually she realized she hadn't properly introduced herself. "By the way, I'm Shauna. I come from Vaniville Town like Serena."

"Nice to meet you, Shauna," Geo said politely, despite feeling a bit uncomfortable.

"Hey you guys, I'm not doing anything big right now, do you mind if I tag along to Lumiose?" Shauna asked, mindlessly patting her Chespin who was loving the attention.

"Sure! The more the merrier," Serena replied before Geo was given the chance. Not that he minded, anyway.

"Alright, cool. I'm gonna go heal up my Pokemon in the Pokemon Center, be back in a moment," Shauna said, standing up from the table.

"Could you do me a favor and heal my Vivillon as well?" Serena asked, pulling out a Pokeball and handing it to Shauna.

"Sure thing! I'll be back," Shauna replied as she took the Pokeball. Her Chespin climbed up onto her shoulder and the two of them headed off toward the Pokemon Center.

"I hope you don't mind Shauna coming along," Serena said before taking another bite of her sandwich.

"No, not at all," Geo replied. He was actually thinking that another person to help search for his friends would benefit him. With both of them deep in thought, they ate in silence until Shauna returned just as they were finishing their lunch.

"Are you guys ready?" Shauna asked. She handed Vivillon's Pokeball back to Serena.

Serena took the ball and both she and Geo nodded. With that, the three of them left Santalune City to continue the trek toward Lumiose City.

* * *

 **They'll get to Lumiose in the next chapter, I promise. Also, sorry if the battle was boring to read. To be honest, I'm going to try to avoid regular Pokemon battles because I think they can get very repetitive to read. For the most part, the only time you'll see Pokemon battles is in gym battles, Team Flare battles (if they even end up playing a part in this fic, I may just end up using some other antagonist), and other special occasions.**

 **Also, I know that the Pokemon stuff is kind of overwhelming the Star Force stuff right now, but that won't be the case once Geo gets reuinited with his friends. Additionally, Shauna is a temporary tag-along, so if you don't like her, don't worry. She's gonna stick around for a bit and then leave to later play a part in finding one of Geo's friends.**


	4. Chapter 3

**Yes I knoooow.. this is long overdue. I actually meant to have this chapter up yesterday, but I couldn't decide on how I wanted it to end so I had to sleep on it. Sorry! But I'm pretty excited to write the next one, so hopefully you'll be seeing it soon. Enjoy!**

* * *

Route four was likely the longest route they had traveled so far, but Geo was hardly bored with the chatting going on between Serena and Shauna. Occasionally they'd ask him a question, most of which he could respond with a nod or awkward smile.

Normally Geo would have zoned out to think about space or food, but he was learning a lot by listening in on the girls' conversations. They had three other friends by the names of Calem, Trevor and Tierno, and they had all begun their journey together before going separate ways. There were also special buildings called 'gyms' where Pokemon trainers could challenge gym leaders to earn badges. He learned a little bit about Pokemon themselves, and that there were different types they were classified as. Those types had strengths and weaknesses too. It sounded like how certain viruses and wave forms had elements, and those elements were weak or strong against others.

"Geo?" he heard Serena's voice call.

"Hm?" Geo answered, blinking at her. "Sorry, I zoned out there for a second."

"How many friends are you looking for?" Serena asked. Shauna seemed to have his full attention as well.

"Um.. just two, as far as I know," he answered. Technically three, since Omega-Xis was missing as well, and Geo was open to the possibility that more than just Sonia and Luna were sucked into the massive ball of crimson. So in reality, he had no idea.

"That's awful you got separated from your friends! But we'll help you find them. What do they look like?" Shauna asked.

"Well.." Geo began, thinking on how to describe his friends. "One has short, dark pink hair and green eyes. Her name is Sonia and she usually wears a pink hoodie. The other, Luna, has blonde hair in two big curls. Kind of hard to miss. She's almost always wearing blue."

"Alright, we'll keep an eye out for either of them," Serena replied. "And like I said earlier, we can ask Professor Sycamore. He might have met them."

Geo nodded, hoping what Serena said was true. "Thanks a lot for helping me out."

"No problem!" Shauna replied cheerily. Just then, the three of them stopped in front of a wide gate.

"This is one of the entrances that leads to Lumiose City. It's just on the other side," Serena explained, then headed through the gate. Shauna and Geo followed behind her.

After the short walk through the tunnel, they emerged in the largest city in Kalos. Geo was taken aback by the size and the crowds. It looked a bit like Willshire Hills, only less technologically advanced. All the towns they'd passed through had been so quiet and simple, but this place was clearly the central hub of this land. That gave him an idea...

Geo slipped on his visualizer and was immediately comforted by the familiar sight of EM wave roads. There was something strange about them, though. The roads were dark and all of them appeared to lead to a tall tower in the center of the city. If only he had Omega-Xis with him, he would have been able to check it out.

"What's that tall tower?" Geo finally asked, sliding his visualizer back up onto his forehead.

"That's Prism Tower, it's a symbol of Lumiose City and also a gym," Serena answered. "But.. it looks like the power's out right now. We can check that out later though, first let's go see the Professor."

If Geo were on his own, he likely would have been wandering Lumiose for hours. Thankfully, Serena and Shauna knew their way to the Professor's lab. Before long, they were headed through the door. A lady at the desk inside directed them to the third floor, and all three of them squeezed into the elevator.

Once they arrived on the third floor, Serena stepped out of the elevator first and called "Professor Sycamore?"

"One moment!" a man's voice called from the right, behind a wall. A moment later, a tall man with disheveled black hair wearing a lab coat stepped into view. "Shauna, Serena! How are you two? And who's this?"

Serena was the one to respond. "This is my new friend. I was wondering if you could give him a starter Pokemon?"

"Of course, of course! Follow me," Professor Sycamore motioned for them to follow before walking back behind the wall. The three of them headed after him.

"I don't think I've seen you around before.. tell me a little about yourself," the Professor asked while hunched over his desk. He seemed to be shuffling through a large box.

"Uh.." Geo began, a bit unhappy about being put on the spot. "My name's Geo. I'm not from around here."

"Oh? In that case, you certainly could use a Pokemon," Professor Sycamore replied. He turned around with a flat red device, which expanded and showed a display. "I'm going to show you three Pokemon that you can choose from."

First, he pulled up an image of a little green Pokemon with a bulb on its back. He turned the device around to show Geo. "This is Bulbasaur, the seed Pokemon." Next, he showed an image of a little red creature with a flame on its tail. "This is Charmander, the lizard Pokemon." Lastly, he showed an image of what looked to Geo like a blue turtle. "And this is Squirtle, the tiny turtle Pokemon. So, which one would you like?"

For a moment, Geo was at a loss for words. A free Pokemon? "I can have any one of these?"

Sycamore nodded. "That's right! Unfortunately I don't have any of the traditional Kalos starters, but hopefully these Kanto starters will do."

Geo looked down thought for a moment, knowing it was a big decision. Before long, looked back up at the Professor. "Could I have Charmander?"

The Professor nodded and reached into one of the pockets on his lab coat. "Here you are.. and take this as well," he said, handing Geo the red device from earlier in addition to Charmander's Pokeball. "It's your Pokedex. It's a handy little device that will automatically record the data of any Pokemon you encounter."

Geo took the Pokeball and Pokedex from Professor Sycamore and smiled in thanks.

Professor Sycamore smiled back. "I'm sure these two ladies can give you some advice on being a trainer."

"Of course!" Shauna answered cheerily. "Once we-"

"Professor!" a woman's voice called, cutting Shauna off and alerting the entire group. A dark-haired woman in a similar white lab coat appeared from behind the wall. She stopped in front of them, looking frantic. "It's happened again."

"What's happened?" Serena asked, thinking they must have been referring to the power outage.

The professor shoved his hands into his coat pockets and shook his head. "There's a shady group of people stealing Pokemon in Lumiose City. They're mostly targeting new trainers, but that's not always the case."

"That's terrible.." Shauna commented quietly. "Is there anything we can do?"

Once again, Professor Sycamore shook his head. "I'm afraid not. Honestly, it's likely best that you don't get involved. I don't want you three losing your Pokemon as well. Understand?"

The three kids all nodded, and Geo looked to the Pokeball in his hand. The professor must have noticed, because he spoke up again.

"By the way, Geo, would you like to name your Charmander?" he asked, motioning to the Pokeball in Geo's hand.

"Huh?" he asked, looking back up at the professor. A name? He hadn't thought about that.. "I'll.. have to think about it." He slipped Charmander's Pokeball into one of the pouches on his belt.

"Certainly! A good name requires a lot of consideration. Now," he replied, turning away from the three to once again rummage through items on his desk. "I need to focus on that situation that's come up. Don't hesitate to call or visit if you need me."

"Sure thing, we'll get out of your hair," Shauna replied with a smile and a wave, even though the professor wouldn't see. With that, the three kids left the office and headed back into the elevator. Once they were back on the first floor, Geo noticed a pair of kids at the front desk. A boy and a slightly younger girl, who looked like she'd been crying.

"Those must be trainers that lost their Pokemon.." Serena observed quietly. "Who'd do something so horrible like steal Pokemon?"

"I don't know," Geo answered, forcing himself to look away from the scene. At that moment, there was a loud noise that rattled the entire building. The first floor of the lab erupted into screams and yelps from everyone inside. Geo instinctively ran for the front door, and once outside, he looked for the source of the sudden shaking. Shauna and Serena had followed after him.

Black smoke was billowing out of Prism Tower, and crowds of people were running away from the center of the city. The shaking had already ceased, and the damage seemed to be contained to just the tower.

For a moment, Geo worried that the ball of crimson he encountered earlier may have followed him, but after slipping on his visualizer he found nothing of the sort. He did, however, catch sight of something moving around on the EM wave roads. _'That has to be a virus..'_

But could he really help without the ability to become Megaman? He didn't have Omega-Xis, but he did have his battle cards. Still, that meant he needed some way to reach the wave road. Geo knew that if he ran off now, it'd draw the attention of Shauna and Serena, and likely everyone else around him as well. Still.. he had to do something if no one else could.

Geo took off toward the center of the city, despite the frantic calls from Serena and Shauna telling him to wait. The streets were mostly vacant by now, aside from some bystanders, so he didn't have to push through crowds. It wasn't hard to find the base of the tower either, since it was right in the center of the city. There, he spotted a ladder on the tower that was probably there for maintenance. Geo took a deep breath and approached the ladder. _'I really hope I can handle what I'm getting into..'_

* * *

 **Whew, a lot happened in this chapter (and it's the longest chapter so far). Starting probably next chapter, I'm going to keep a list of who has what Pokemon and what moves they know.**

 **And now I'm also beginning to depart a bit from the Pokemon X/Y story line. I find that re-tellings of stories just with new characters end up being a bit boring, so I'm going to be throwing in my own twists here and there so it's different enough.**

 **Okay, see you soon!**


	5. Chapter 4

**The second half of this chapter may seem a bit.. rushed. I wanted to post it before I go on vacation for two weeks. So here it is!**

* * *

Geo practically flew up the ladder leading up the side of Prism Tower. "This would be so much easier as Megaman.." he complained through his heavy breathing caused by the workout. At least Mega couldn't make a joke about him being out of shape. But soon enough, he reached the point of the tower where the smoke was still pouring out. It wasn't as thick as before. The ledge he was forced to stand on was uncomfortably narrow, so he pressed his back against the tower and slipped on his visualizer.

Sure enough, a pair of Mettenna were wreaking havoc on the tower. It always seemed to be these wimpy guys causing the most trouble. But now that Geo was within range, he could take them out no problem. He grabbed a wide sword card and inserted it into his Hunter VG, which deleted both viruses in one go.

"Well.. that was easy," he sighed in relief, but made the mistake of looking down. Heights never bothered Geo, but while he was standing on such a narrow ledge and not as Megaman, he was eager to be back down on the ground.

"Geo!" a faint voice called to him. He instantly recognized it as Serena's. Great, he had no idea how he was going to explain any of this. Both girls were standing at the base of the tower and looking up in complete shock. Geo knew that had to get down quickly so they wouldn't worry.

But from there, things didn't go exactly as planned. It would seem that Geo hadn't cleared away all the viruses, because the entire tower shook again. He quickly tried to grab onto something, but found nothing. With a yell, he lost his balance and fell off the tower.

Everything happened in a blur. He heard the girls call out his name, but he didn't see them. All he saw was a flash of green.

"Geo! Transform now!"

His eyes widened. Geo knew who'd just spoken, but he didn't have time to make sense of it all just yet. He quickly said those familiar words, sounding frantic and out of breath. "Transcode: Megaman!"

He disappeared in a flash of light. When Geo finally got his bearings, he was standing on the wave road.

"What a mess. You think those viruses came from our world?" the same voice from before asked. In front of him, a green-bodied alien with blue armor appeared.

"Mega!" Geo exclaimed, lunging forward to pull his AMian friend into a hug. Omega-Xis somewhat awkwardly hugged him back.

"Hey. Good to see you didn't end up as a pancake," Mega greeted him. "Now how about we take care of whatever's causing all the ruckus?"

"Sure, let's go," Geo said with a nod. Omega-Xis returned to his body.

"Look up," Mega commanded. "This tower's cyber core is right above us. The viruses are probably hiding out in there."

"Got it," Geo replied and began traveling along the wave road.

"So.. who are the girls?" Mega asked, half because he was trying to kill time and half because he was genuinely interested.

"Just some friends I made," Geo answered with a shrug.

"What is it with you and attracting females?" Mega jokingly asked.

"I'm pretty sure Zack, Bud and Jack are guys," Geo replied while rolling his eyes.

"Aw, you know I'm just kidding," Mega teased, but then his tone changed to a more serious one. "But speaking of female friends.. where are they?"

Geo shook his head. "I don't know. I wish I did. You haven't encountered Lyra yet? Or even Vogue?"

"No," the AMian answered. "But if we found each other, we'll probably find them too. Sooner or later. For now, let's just clear out this cyber core. We're here."

"Right.." Geo said in a disheartened tone. He entered the cyber core.

Prism Tower's cyber core looked very different from what he was used to, but it was obvious that the viruses inside, a few Cannonbases and some HotRoaders, were the source of the damage. Megaman dispatched them without too much of a hassle, and soon was on his way back out of the cyber core.

Once outside, he noticed the change in the city. "Looks like the power's back on."

"All in a day's work," Omega-Xis replied. "Let's pulse out."

Without another word, Geo pulsed out and left the wave road. He was sure to put himself out of sight from Serena and Shauna, who were no doubt still wondering where he went.

When Geo materialized on the ground as his regular self, he let out a sigh of relief and pulled out his Hunter VG. It was reassuring to see Omega-Xis on the screen.

"Listen Mega, I don't think these people know anything about EM beings. You'll have to lay low for a while," Geo warned his friend. "And I don't really think you want to pose as a Pokemon."

"A what?" the alien began to ask, but was cut off by another voice.

"Geo!" Serena called as she ran to him. Shauna wasn't far behind. The two girls skidded to a stop when they finally reached him and looked absolutely bewildered as to why he wasn't only alive, but appeared to be perfectly fine.

"You're alright? But we saw you fall of the tower!" Shauna exclaimed. She was holding her Chespin rather tightly, likely because the scare had her so shaken up.

"Yeah, I.. I don't know what happened," Geo lied. "There was a flash of light when I was falling, and the next thing I knew, I was standing here."

 _'Heh heh..'_ Omega-Xis chuckled quietly to himself. _'Back to this again.'_

"I don't know what to make of all this.." Serena said, pressing the palm of her hand to her forehead. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, really. And uh, I fixed the tower," Geo added sheepishly.

At that, both girls turned their attention away from Geo to confirm that the power had in fact returned to Lumiose City. Only half of Prism Tower was lit, likely because of the damage it had sustained from the viruses, but the city itself was entirely back to normal.

"How did you manage that?" Serena asked, sounding completely shocked.

"W- well.." Geo stammered, trying to think of an explanation. The one he came up with wasn't even a lie. "I just know a lot about this kind of technology."

"I wonder if someone saved you, somehow," Shauna wondered aloud. "Maybe a flying-type Pokemon?"

Geo shrugged, hoping they'd finally move on from the topic. He understood their concern though, it _was_ a really close call. On the other hand, he'd certainly experienced much closer calls. Maybe he was becoming numb to it? ... He certainly hoped not. Maybe Omega-Xis had a death wish sometimes, but Geo most certainly did not.

"There you are!" a familiar voice called to the three. The source was Professor Sycamore, and he was quickly making his way toward the kids. "I came looking for you when the receptionist said you ran outside during the chaos. Are you three alright? You should've stayed inside."

"Yes, we're fine, Professor," Serena answered, casting a quick glance at Geo, who nodded.

"That's a relief. Now come with me, we shouldn't be standing under the tower in case it's unstable," he motioned for them to follow and headed back down the street toward the lab with the three kids in tow.

"No one's sure what caused Prism Tower to malfunction like that," the professor said as they walked. "But while they look into it, I want the three of you to steer clear of the city until it's safe. Head to Camphrier Town. From there it's a bit of a walk to Cyllage City, but you'll find another gym there. By the time you come back around, Lumiose City should be safe again."

"Understood, Professor Sycamore," Shauna replied. She seemed to be quickly getting back to her cheery self, despite the events that had transpired.

The group of four stopped once they had reached the gate that lead to Route 5.

Professor Sycamore turned to them. "I need to get back quickly to make sure the Pokemon in my lab are doing okay. Good luck on your journeys, and don't get into any more trouble, alright?"

Serena was quick to nod. "We won't. Thanks a lot, professor!"

With a smile and a wave, the professor turned and left them standing alone at the gate.

"If we want to get through Route 5 before dark, we should get going," Serena suggested. "We can stay the night at the Camphrier Town Pokemon Center. How about it?"

"Sounds good to me," Shauna answered while Geo nodded. The excitable girl grabbed the wrists of both Serena and Geo and began tugging them along down the route. This came as a shock to Geo, but he let a smile tug at the corner of his mouth. He had to admire her enthusiasm.

 _'Hey Kid, you could learn a thing or two from her,'_ Omega-Xis quietly teased him.

"Hush Mega," Geo playfully shushed him. He couldn't help but smile even more though. Sonia and Luna were still missing, but he was so glad to have Omega-Xis back.

And maybe the AMian wouldn't admit it, lest he sound _too sappy_ for his taste, but Mega was relieved to have Geo back too.

* * *

 **D'aww, I'm a sucker for little bro moments between Geo and Mega.**

 **Okay yes I blatantly ripped off the XY anime with that falling off the tower bit and I'm so not sorry. Still, that's not something I'm going to keep doing, so don't worry. I'm not all that happy with the way the second half of this chapter turned out, but eh, I'll get better. That's partly why I'm writing this anyway.**


	6. Chapter 5

**While I apologize for the lateness of this chapter, I don't apologize for the shortness of it. Because I'd rather just publish it now for you to enjoy rather than delaying it for god knows how long just so I can shove more filler in places.**

 **Also! Thanks for the reviews guys. There's one in particular I'd like to respond to, but I can't do so because it was anonymous. So feel free to disregard this next paragraph.**

 **a man: It's a bit of a spoiler, but yes, Omega-Xis is indeed an AMian. It's less apparent in the anime, but it's a very big plot point in the games, specifically the first one. However, he did spent most of his life on planet FM after AM was destroyed, which is likely where your confusion comes from. Also, do keep in mind that this fic is based on the game canon, not the anime (which, disregarding story entirely are still rather similar, but do have their differences).**

* * *

The sky had just begun to turn dark as the group started on the path through Route 5 toward Camphrier Town. Geo found his eyes drawn toward the sky, as always. He heard Omega-Xis chuckle from his Hunter, but didn't comment on it.

"So Geo, why don't you take out your Charmander? I want to meet him!" Shauna exclaimed. She'd been in front of him, but had turned around and was now walking backwards.

 _'Your what?'_ Mega asked.

"Oh, uh.. yeah, why not?" Geo replied, reaching for his Pokeball. He examined it for a moment, then did as he'd seen Serena demonstrate earlier. The ball snapped open, and a Charmander materialized in a flash of red light.

"Char!" the creature shrieked, raising its arms into the air.

 _'What.. is that? It's on fire!'_ Mega's voice came from the Hunter, causing Geo to shush him.

"How cute!" the girls both said in unison. The three had stopped in order to admire the Pokemon.

"Have you thought of a name yet?" Serena asked, kneeling down to rub Charmander's head. The Pokemon cooed at her.

"Ah, no.. not yet," Geo replied sheepishly. At the same time, he could only imagine what Mega must be making of the conversation.. and the Pokemon.

"That's alright," Serena replied, pulling away from Charmander and returning to a standing position. "A good name requires a lot of thought. I still haven't picked a name for Fennekin."

A sudden shout from the right caught Geo's attention. The source appeared to be a group of kids skating around, hollering at each other.

"There's a skate park on this route. Cool huh?" Shauna asked with a wide smile. Geo awkwardly returned the smile with a nod.

 _'Aw, he doesn't care about stuff like that. He'd rather look at that boring old sky,'_ Omega-Xis said, much too loud for Geo's liking. The boy coughed to cover up the sound of Mega's voice.

"What was that?" Serena asked, confused about the mysterious voice.

"N-nothing!" Geo exclaimed with a fake smile while Mega sighed. He glanced over at the ground of skating kids. "It must've come from them." In hopes of finding a way to change the subject, he looked back to Charmander. Geo then knelt next to the Pokemon and carefully took it into his arms.

"Be careful around that tail," Serena warned him. "You don't want to get burned."

 _'He's had worse,'_ Omega-Xis mumbled.

Surprisingly, the Charmander wasn't too heavy. With the Pokemon in his arms, Geo once again looked to the girls. "Should we get going again?"

"Right, we want to reach the Pokemon Center before dark," Serena replied with a nod. "Let's get going."

As the group started off again, Geo fell back a bit so he and his wizard could talk without the girls overhearing.

 _'So.. what is that thing?'_ Mega asked, trying to get a good look at the creature in Geo's arms.

"It's a Pokemon," the boy replied. "They're.. animals that exist in this place. People raise them and use them to fight. At least, that's what I've gathered."

 _'Huh. Doesn't seem like something you'd take part in,'_ Mega sneered.

"It's not like I have much of a choice. Besides, they're.. kind of cute," Geo said with a slight smile.

Mega rolled his eyes, but Geo didn't see. The AMian said nothing else on the matter.

"Geo! You alright back there?" Shauna called. Both girls had stopped for a moment to allow him to catch up. Once he had, they continued walking.

"I'm alright. How much farther do we have to go?" Geo asked, hoping he didn't sound rude.

"Actually, we're here," Serena said.

The town was incredibly small and surrounded by a wall, which was probably why Geo didn't notice. It looked very peaceful though, a lot like Vaniville town. But unlike Vaniville, Camphrier had a large building surrounded by a moat, which immediately grabbed Geo's attention.

Since it was fairly dark by this point, there wasn't much sightseeing to be had. Shauna directed them all to the Pokemon Center, and once inside, the girls went to secure themselves a room for the night. Geo, meanwhile, stood off to the side like a lost puppy until Serena approached.

"Shauna's getting us a room," she said, not looking at Geo but rather examining the interior of the Pokemon Center. "This one's pretty empty. If we'd gone into a Lumiose City Center, it probably would've been pretty crowded. Especially this time of night."

Geo nodded, but once again said nothing. Figuring this was a good time to return Charmander to its Pokeball, he did so.

When Shauna returned, she motioned for the two of them to follow. Their room was only a short walk down the hall. The room itself was plain but cozy. It had four beds, one of which very quickly had bags and other belongings from all three kids tossed onto it.

"Okay, I'm going to get changed, so I'll be right back," Shauna said, and soon left the room.

"And I'm low on potions, so I'm going to check out the PokeMart here," Serena added. Before long, she was gone too.

 _'Oh, finally. I could only take so much of you shushing me,'_ Omega-Xis complained. He left Geo's Hunter VG and materialized in front of the boy.

"Mega!" Geo called frantically. "What if they come back in and see you?"

"Relax kid, I'll be gone before they come back," the AMian replied.

"Gone?" Geo asked curiously.

"Yeah. Figured I might look around to see if anyone we know is here," Omega-Xis replied.

"Yeah.. good idea," Geo said with a sigh. He wandered over to the window and glanced outside. Unfortunately, there wasn't much to see. But now they finally had a chance to talk. "Do you have any idea what happened?"

"No," Mega answered simply. "I know that this big ball of crimson popped up out of nowhere, and the next thing I knew, I was waking up on top of a building somewhere."

"So you wound up in Lumiose?" Geo asked, pressing a hand to his chin in thought.

"That big city with the tower you jumped off of?" Mega joked. "Yeah."

"Then.. Luna and Sonia could be anywhere," Geo said with a heavy sigh. He turned away from the window and back to Mega. "Lrya and Vogue could be anywhere. What if more people than just us got mixed up in this? And even if we find everyone, how do we get back home?"

The AMian sighed. "I'd like to reassure you, Geo, but I can't. I'm just as clueless as you are. But if we found each other, we can probably find them too. Let's just focus on that and see where it takes us."

"Right.. okay." Geo agreed, sounding defeated.

"But hey, look on the bright side, at least nothing's trying to kill us yet," Mega pointed out, trying to cheer they boy up.

"Yet?" Geo asked, crossing his arms.

"Eh.. give it a couple of days," he replied, shrugging.

"I'm glad you're back, Mega," Geo said suddenly, unable to hold back his smile.

"Aw, I knew you'd be off getting yourself into trouble so I couldn't just leave you alone, now could I?" Omega-Xis teased.

Geo burst into laughter. He knew that meant Mega had missed him, too. "Right."

Everything that happened next came in a blur. Before either of them had a chance to react, the door opened. There in the doorway stood both girls, eyes wide and figures tense, at least, until Serena stepped forward. "Geo? What is..?"

Geo's breath hitched in his throat. "I.. can't really explain."

* * *

 **Aha, look at that, cliffhanger. I'm terrible.**

 **Originally, I wasn't going to have Omega-Xis be discovered here. And then I thought it'd be more fun this way. So I did it.**

 **Also, I _intended_ to have someone sort of encounter on Route 5, likely a wild Pokemon encounter, but decided against it. They're gonna take plenty of detours before reaching Cyllage City so for this chapter I just wanted to get them to the Pokemon Center.**

 **Thanks for your patience concerning my irregular updates. It's probably going to continue to be this way (with the way my life just.. is), but I have no intention of stopping this story. See you all next chapter.**

 **(Also, if anyone has a good name for Geo's Charmander, PM me? I got nothin')**


	7. Chapter 6

**Here we gooo.. unnecessarily long author's note incoming..?**

 **I'm still working on this story. I said a while back that I have no intention of discontinuing it, and that's still 100% true. That's said, my life is so off the rails right now and I'm exhausted (I've been running on 3 hours of sleep for 16 hours now. How do I do it? I'm a college student it just comes naturally). My motivation for getting this chapter posted now is that starting like, yesterday, I'm going to be incredibly busy until like mid January. Yay..**

 **So, to address the reviewers who seem rather concerned as to how Serena can see Omega-Xis: It's nothing new, actually. Mega gained the ability to appear visible to humans in SF3 (recall the time he teased Luna by chasing her around near the beginning of the game, for starters). He's Geo's wizard now, remember? And, like man-made wizards, he's able to use Geo's Hunter VG to appear visible to humans.**

 **That does bring me to something I'd like to mention ahead of time, though. As I said in some other chapter, most of the information I pull for this fic is going to be based on the games, with some minor exceptions (such as Pokemon Centers having rooms for trainers to stay in, for one), however, there is something I'll be utilizing from the Starforce anime because it'll make things easier on me. In the MMSF anime, Megaman can change to and from visible frequency range at will, and he can in this fic as well. After all, since he began doing so involuntarily in SF2, it seems reasonable to say he's able to control it by now.**

 **Anyway, the rest is just responses to anonymous reviews, so you can skip if you'd like, if you haven't already.**

 **a man: I don't want to give away too much, but I do intend to throw an Eevee into the mix at some point c:**

 **maccaroni LOL: Honestly, if you're that repulsed by it I don't think there's much to worry about? I'm not super big on writing romance, or at the very least, it doesn't take a major role in my writings. Random fluff is probably as far as it'll go. But I guess I can't say for sure yet. Pretty hard to please everyone in the MMSF fandom, though. Everyone and their grandma has like, seven OTPs and twice as many NOTPs.**

 **Anyway, enough of my inane ramblings, on with the show.**

* * *

What felt like an eternity had really only been a few minutes. Geo had convinced the girls to take a seat on the beds after hastily closing the door. Now they sat opposite from each other, staring at Omega-Xis with a mix of shock and awe. At this point the AMian figured that going back into the Hunter wasn't going to make things any better.

Geo had spent at least a good minute in absolute panic, but once it had passed, he took a deep breath. Who knows, maybe having this out in the open would help him in the long run. He wasn't quite sure where to begin, so first his plan would be to talk himself in far enough that he couldn't back out.

"I'm.. I'm not from here," Geo began, pausing long enough for Serena to interject.

"You mean, you're from another region?" Serena asked, though a bit confused as to why Geo hadn't started off with explaining the strange creature in the room.

"No, I.. I'm from another world entirely. At least I think so. A world where Pokemon don't exist. It's so different from what I've seen here." Geo paused for a moment to glance toward Mega. The alien didn't say anything, but somehow just his presence was reassuring. "This is my friend, Mega. I mean.. Omega-Xis. He's actually an alien, from outer space. We were investigating something when an accident happened, and somehow we both woke up here."

The girls were both stunned into silence. It certainly wasn't every day one heard a story like that. Of course, to Geo, being in this world was the real shock.

"Wow, that's so cool! Can he talk?" Shauna asked, startling Geo with the way she bounced back so suddenly.

"Of course I can talk!" Mega retorted, causing Shauna to yelp in surprise.

Serena, on the other hand, was a bit more cautious, or perhaps just curious. "What were you investigating?"

"A broken movie projector.." Geo answered. "It's kind of hard to explain without demonstrating but.. Mega and I are really good at fixing technology. But this massive ball of crimson appeared out of nowhere and sucked us into it. We didn't any time to react.. and I fell unconscious after that, I think."

".. What's crimson?" Shauna asked, giving a subtle tilt of her head to one side.

Geo paused a moment as he considered the best way to proceed. "In our world, there's something called noise. It's produced by our EM technology. If enough noise gathers, it forms a cluster. And if enough of those noise clusters gather, it forms crimson. It's a bit dangerous, but I've dealt with it a lot."

"A lot is a bit of an understatement," Mega added, once again breaking his silence. "Though this time, the crimson was completely out of control.."

"And your friends got caught in it too, right? That's why you're searching for them?" Serena asked. Geo was amazed at how quickly they both seemed to be adjusting to this.

"Yeah," the boy replied with a nod. "We're worried they could have ended up anywhere. And.. it's not just Sonia and Luna. They have wizards too, like Omega-Xis. They're probably missing too."

Serena nodded, but fell silent as she cast her gaze away from the two. Geo didn't blame her, it was no doubt a lot to take in at once. The only reason he was able to believe this world was real was because he was seeing it with his own eyes, and that Mega was here as well.

"If.. if you have any more questions, I'll answer them," Geo said, addressing both girls in the room. "But please, could you keep this all a secret?"

Serena glanced back to Geo before giving him a small smile. "Of course."

Shauna nodded with a wide grin stretched across her face. "And this doesn't change anything, we're still going to help you find your friends!"

Finally, Geo smiled and let out a small but earnest laugh. "Thank you."

Mega laughed as well, though mostly at Geo. "Aw, look at that, you made him smile. That's impressive."

Geo rolled his eyes at his wizard, but suddenly something else came to mind that he had forgotten. "Weren't you going to take a look around for Luna and Sonia?"

"Shooing me off, eh? Yeah yeah, I'm heading out. I'll be back later." With that, the AMian turned to waves and disappeared.

Geo turned his attention back toward the girls. At this point he felt rather awkward, perhaps because Mega was now gone. "I realize this is all a bit.. sudden."

"It is, but.. I believe you," Serena replied. Her expression was still soft and understanding, and that comforted Geo.

"That said, we should probably get some sleep," Shauna suggested while she stretched, and soon transitioned into a yawn. "We'll have plenty of time to talk tomorrow, too. And I'm sure Geo's friends have lots of interesting stories, too!"

"Yeah.." Geo replied, taking a seat on his bed. He couldn't help but wonder if Sonia and Luna were okay, and he hated to wonder if they were alone and lost at this time of night. Even if Sonia was without Lyra, he was almost certain she'd be alright. But Luna.. ever since what happened with Joker, he couldn't help but worry about her.

Finally, Geo laid back. After slipping off his pendant and visualizer, he closed his eyes. Today had been confusing and a bit scary, but finally he had a bit of time to rest. With a clouded head and troubled mind, he eventually fell asleep.

* * *

When Geo woke he heard a faint voice in the room, as if someone was speaking softly. Eventually, his curiosity got the better of him and he rubbed his eyes before opening them. When the boy sat up he found Mega, once again out of his Hunter. It looked as though he'd been talking to Serena and Shauna.

"See? I told you he'd wake up late," Mega teased as the three of them turned to look at Geo.

"You could have woken me," Geo replied with a yawn, turning so he sat with his legs over the side of the bed.

Serena shrugged in response. "We're not in that much of a rush. Besides, Mega's been telling us more about your missing friends."

"Did you find anything while you were out searching?" Geo asked, reaching for his pendant and visualizer to once again put them back on.

The AMian shook his head. "No, but we've added a few members to our little search and rescue team."

Geo looked a bit confused. "What do you mean?"

"I called our friends Trevor, Tierno and Calem," Shauna explained with a cheery smile. "I told them to keep an eye out for them. With all of us looking out for them, I'm sure we'll find them in no time!"

Shauna's blind optimism was a little too much for Geo, but he appreciated the sentiment anyway. He nodded, looking from one girl to the other. "Should we get going again, then?"

Serena gave a nod. "We should make our way toward Cyllage City, like the professor said. It's quite a ways to travel, but we'll make stops along the way."

With that, the three stood and began gathering their things. Mega retreated back into Geo's Hunter VG, though Geo knew he'd be a lot more talkative now. It was good to see him getting along with Serena and Shauna, not that he'd been anticipating otherwise. The girls seemed to adjust quickly to his presence, perhaps because living in a world filled with Pokemon made you a bit numb to the sight of new creatures.

Still though, it was nice to have things out in the open. At least Mega wouldn't have to hide as much, which Geo was certain he appreciated. On top of that, it probably made searching for Sonia and Luna much easier.

Finally, the group left the Pokemon Center, unbeknownst to the fact that they wouldn't make it far. They'd soon find another interesting roadblock standing in their way.

* * *

 **Bit of a lame ending, but oh well. Like I said, had to update this like, tonight before I lose my small window to do so.**

 **Oh, and just a heads up, we may be switching perspectives next chapter. You know what that means! We're _actually_ going to do stuff with Sonia and/or Luna. Wooo.**

 **But one more things before we part. Sun and Moon! That's a thing. They released. So, my question to my small mass of readers is, would you like me to include Alolan Pokemon in some way? Let me know via PM/review/carrier pigeon either way. Feel free to share your ideas, but even if I just get a "Yes", I'll find some way to make it work.**


	8. Chapter 7

**Still not abandoning this story.**

 **Also hey, it's been a while. Not much to say, but this chapter's a little longer than most, so enjoy. I'll jabber a little more at the end of the chapter.**

* * *

Sonia began to wake as something wet brushed against the back of her hand. Her eyes quickly fluttered open, only to find herself laying on her stomach in the grass. Something moved beside her, startling the girl enough to scramble into an upright sitting position.

What she found was a dog, some sort of poodle, to be exact. It was a large one at that, with clean white fur. "Hey doggy," she greeted it, and the animal seemed to respond well. It stepped closer to sniff Sonia's face before giving her a lick.

Sonia leaned back a bit, but she giggled. "Good dog. Where's your owner..?" It was only then that Sonia turned her attention to her surroundings. She could tell she was outside, but most of her view was obscured by a large bush.

Suddenly, Sonia's eyes widened and her hands flew to her Hunter VG. "Lyra?" she called worriedly, though no answer came from the device. "She's not here.." The girl's next thought was to contact Geo, though unfortunately her Hunter didn't seem to be connected. That left her at a complete loss as to what to do next.

The dog barked at Sonia, startling the girl out of her thoughts. "What is it?" Finally she stood, hoping to peek around the bush and get a better idea of where she happened to be.

From what she could tell, Sonia appeared to be in a courtyard of sorts, or perhaps a large garden. There were a few people standing around, but so far none had noticed her. _'Maybe I won't look too out of place by taking a look around,'_ she thought to herself while stepping out from behind the bush. The poodle followed closely by her side.

At the far end of the courtyard, there was a large building which looked like a fancy mansion. There were also plenty of statues around, some of them quite large. The building seemed like a good place to start, if it was open. Sonia had only made it to the bridge connecting the building to the courtyard when she heard someone shout.

"You found it! My beloved Furfrou!"

The dog scrambled to hide behind Sonia's legs, nearly knocking the girl over. A man approached them hastily, his eyes locked on the poor dog.

"Oh, uh, is this your dog..?" Sonia asked, casting a glance toward the poodle which was still standing behind her legs.

"Could you be responsible for my wonderfrou reunion with my dear Furfrou?" the man asked, turning his attention to Sonia.

"Huh?" the girl stuttered, trying to find the right words through her confusion. "I just found him behind the bush over-"

"How wonderfrou indeed! Marvelous, simply marvelous!" the man exclaimed, startling both Sonia and the dog once more. "A situation like this demands fireworks! We shall put on a show as a celebration of the bond between Furfrou and I.. and as a reward for your trouble. Come, follow me inside, I'll show you to the balcony."

"Oh, uh, alright," Sonia replied, casting a distressed glance at her Hunter VG once more. If only Lyra were here, she might have had some idea to get them out of this mess. At the very least, she figured there was no harm in playing along for now.

* * *

After their late start, the traveling trainers Geo, Serena and Shauna made their way through Camphrier town toward the west exit. Omega-Xis, though he no longer had to keep his existence a secret from the girls, still hid away in Geo's Hunter VG to avoid the prying eyes of passersby. It didn't seem to stop his commentary, however.

 _'So you use these Pokemon to fight, right? That's not like, illegal?'_ the AMian asked. Geo wondered if he was genuinely curious, or if he just wanted to chitchat.

"No, the Pokemon like it, actually. Some for the show of strength, some for the competition, some just want to be cared for by a trainer," Serena answered, seemingly unfazed by the question. "Of course, there's other things to do with Pokemon besides battling."

 _'Like what?'_ Mega prompted.

"Well.." Serena went on, though she paused as though she were considering something. "There's Pokemon performances. People who train with their Pokemon to put on a show and compete against others. I used to see those on TV all the time. Then there's also people who use Pokemon in their work, like movers, bakers, janitors, teachers… just about everyone, really."

 _'Wow. Seems like this world is really dependent on Pokemon,'_ Omega-Xis commented.

"Just like how our world is really dependent on EM technology," Geo pointed out.

The conversation came to an end when the sight of two people next to a lump on the bridge ahead caught the group's attention. As they approached, Geo could just make out their conversation.

"Here we go again. It's sleeping so soundly, the end of the world wouldn't wake it."

"Look! It's practically a mountain, right? It's blocking the road completely."

By this point, the three kids had stopped just behind the strangers - two men - and the roadblock. Geo couldn't see it very well, but by now he was sure it was safe to assume it was a Pokemon.

"Come now, sir. Use the Poke Flute! Oh.. wait, do you even have it anymore?" the stranger on the left asked, a blond-haired man with his arms crossed.

"Nope. I handed it over," the other replied, gazing at the sleeping lump.

"Huh? What's a Poke Flute?" Shauna asked, gathering the attention of the two men. Both turned to look at the small group, and it was the man on the right who spoke to them.

"The Poke Flute is what we need to wake up Snorlax," he explained. "But it's currently at Parfum Palace."

"Oh, that's it? We'll just get it for you, then!" Shauna replied cheerily. "C'mon guys, let's go! The Parfum Palace is just past Route 6."

Geo wasn't really happy about being delayed longer, but there seemed to be no getting around the Snorlax. With a nod, he and Serena followed Shauna back in the direction they'd come. Before reaching Camphrier Town, however, they turned to the left and headed north.

The path ahead of them was long and lined with trees interspersed with thick bushes. As they passed by, one of the bushes shook violently, and out crawled what looked like an angry bug. Geo took a step back out of surprise and alarm.

Serena lifted her Pokedex for a moment. "It's a wild Venipede," she announced, turning to glance at Geo. "Why don't you fight it, Geo? You haven't had your first battle yet."

"Me?" Geo asked, anxiety flaring up at the thought of battling for the first time after only having seen it done once. The Venipede twitched its antennae and screeched angrily at the group. Clearly, it wasn't going anywhere.

"Go on, throw out your Pokeball," Shauna encouraged him, and Geo did as she said. Charmander popped out of the thrown ball with a warning growl, and locked its eyes on the wild Pokemon.

"Check your Pokedex, it'll tell you what moves Charmander knows," Serena instructed, and while Geo checked his Pokedex she continued. "Just tell Charmander what you want him to do."

The Venipede darted forward to attack just as Geo called out "Scratch!" Charmander darted forward and raked his claws across the wild Pokemon's side. The Venipede screeched once more and rammed itself into Charmander's side, knocking it backward a few paces.

"Are you okay?" Geo called frantically. Charmander only replied with a growl and a reassuring flick of its tail.

"Okay, um, Ember!" he called, and Charmander swung its tail to let forth a small fiery projectile which connected with Venipede, distracting it for a good amount of time as it rolled in the dirt to extinguish its antennae.

"Venipede is part bug-type, so that did a lot of damage," Serena explained.

"Use Ember again," Geo instructed, a little more confident this time. The flame once again crashed into Venipede, and the wild Pokemon turned and went scurrying back into the bush. Charmander gave a victory yowl.

"That was great, Geo! You won your first battle!" Shauna exclaimed, clasping her hands together.

 _'I guess that was pretty cool,'_ Omega-Xis added, _'Not quite as cool as virus battles, though.'_

Geo rubbed the back of his neck out of embarrassment before walking over to scoop Charmander up into his arms.

 _'Hey, when do I get one of those?'_ Mega asked jokingly as Geo returned Charmander to its Pokeball.

"Let's keep going," Serena instructed, though she was clearly just as excited about Geo's first victory. The group continued on down the path, soon coming to a large open gate with a luxurious-looking mansion beyond it.

"It's huge," Shauna commented, as the three headed past the gate and into the building. The interior was even more impressive, with red tiling and golden statues sitting atop pillars of stone. Geo was taken aback by the sight.

"They said the Poke Flute was here in the palace, so maybe we should talk to whoever's in charge," Serena suggested, though as she looked through the doorway, she paused.

Geo happened to notice the slight change. "Something wrong?"

"No.." Serena answered tentatively, "Just thought I saw something."

Geo shrugged, and following Serena's lead, he headed into the hall. The white walls here were adorned with golden accents, and the doors were tall and large. He couldn't help but wonder what was on the other side of them.

"There it is again," Serena spoke, motioning to something down the right side of the hall. "Geo, look!"

 _'What is it? I wanna see,'_ Omega-Xis complained.

"Mega, shh," Geo scolded the alien, feeling uncomfortable with him chattering around the palace crowd. But as he followed Serena's gaze down the hallway, his annoyance was completely forgotten. A person in a pink hoodie stood with their back turned to the group.

Geo felt like his heart had stopped. "Sonia?" he called, the anticipating making his breath hitch in his throat. Relief flooded over him at the realization that this couldn't be anyone _but_ Sonia. There was no mistaking that hoodie.

At the sound of her name, the girl began to turn. As her gaze settled on Geo, her eyes widened out of surprise. "Geo!" Then, as the shock wore off, she ran to her friend and pulled him into a hug. The embrace lasted only a few moments before she awkwardly pulled away. "You're okay!"

Geo couldn't help but smile. He'd found another one of his friends, and it was a huge load off his mind. "Yeah. I'm glad we found you."

"Where's Luna? Is she with you?" Sonia asked, noticing the headstrong blonde wasn't with them.

Geo's smile faded as quickly as it had come. "We haven't found her yet. Just you and Mega, so far. Is Lyra with you?"

Sonia shook her head, clearly worried. "She wasn't with me when I woke up."

 _'We'll find her,'_ Mega tried to reassure her.

Geo nodded in agreement, then suddenly became aware of Serena and Shauna, who were still standing nearby. "Oh, uh.. Sonia, this is Serena, and Shauna. They've been helping me out. Serena, Shauna, this is Sonia."

"Nice to meet you!" Shauna exclaimed, extending a hand for Sonia to shake. Serena did the same, and once the girls had been properly acquainted, Geo became aware of someone approaching the group.

"What's this? Friends of yours?" a man asked, and Geo realized he must have been talking to Sonia. There was a dog-like Pokemon standing at his side.

The pink-haired girl nodded. "Yes, they're my friends."

"Oh, wonderfrou! How about you three join us for the fireworks show?" the man insisted, and Geo thought he saw a hint of resentment in the dog's eyes. He must have imagined it.

The three exchanged glances, and finally Serena gave a shrug. "Sure, why not?"

"Marvelous! Follow me, if you will," the man, clearly sounding delighted, headed off toward the stairs where Sonia had been standing before.

"Fireworks! Sounds fun, right guys?" Shauna practically squealed in glee.

Geo nodded with a smile, more so because the good feeling of reuniting with Sonia hadn't worn off yet. He knew he couldn't rest yet though, because Luna was still lost out there, somewhere in this strange world.

* * *

 **Wasn't entirely sure were I wanted the cut-off point for this chapter to be, but it had to happen before it got ridiculously longer than the others.**

 **Okay, so we didn't switch perspectives for the _entire_ chapter. But let's be honest, I didn't want to subject you to Furfrou guy any more than I already had to.**

 **Also, I know that generally the end of a battle involves one Pokemon fainting, but I thought it'd be weird to have an unconscious Venipede just lying there in the road, so I had it run away.**


End file.
